The Beast Bit The Throat of the Late Empress - Chapter 17

Crash!

As Eva fell backwards, her reflexively extended foot knocked over several nearby flower pots, causing a loud noise as they shattered.

“What happened, Lord Divlik?”

Finn, who had been talking with soldiers a short distance away, came running.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

Soon after, a young voice, closer to a boy than a child, perhaps around fifteen or sixteen years old, approached.

Eva regained her balance and stood up, but Divlik didn’t immediately let her go.

“So the roses were blooming here, not on the walls.”

Divlik slightly inhaled, savoring the scent of roses emanating from Eva’s body. Whenever he held Eva, he always detected this rose fragrance at the end of the clean, warm water scent. He wasn’t sure if it was perfume or something else.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Hurry and apologize! Rika!”

“I’m sorry…”

A small girl, who might have been hidden behind the boy, revealed herself. The way she earnestly tried to repeat her brother’s words with her not-yet-fully-formed tongue was so adorable that a smile slowly formed on Divlik’s lips.

“Who are you to be playing here with mallets?”

“Our mother works here, and we came to play for a bit when we found these… Is this called a mallet?”

The boy asked, looking at the wooden hammer in his hand, and Divlik nodded.

“That’s called a mallet, and the game you play with it is called croquet. Weren’t you playing croquet?”

“I don’t really know what that is. We were just playing a game hitting the ball with this since it was here with the ball while our mother was working… I’m sorry. Is your wife… alright?”

The boy didn’t seem to know who Divlik was, let alone Eva, who had her back turned. To the boy’s eyes, the man who unhesitatingly embraced the woman’s waist must have looked like a married couple, beyond just lovers.

Divlik didn’t bother to correct the boy’s misunderstanding. There was no reason to shatter the boy’s innocence, believing that if a man and woman were in close physical contact, they must naturally be married. Isn’t a couple those who share their bodies and hearts? Though with Eva, they might share bodies but never hearts, so it would be different.

“How old are you?”

“I’m fourteen, and my sister is seven years old.”

“Seven years old?”

Divlik turned his gaze towards the sister at the boy’s answer. With her large eyes and chubby face, reddened from playing outside for so long, the little girl looked almost like a small bisque doll decorating a noble young lady’s room.

The boy quickly hid the girl behind his back at Divlik’s gaze.

“Can we go now?”

The young boy’s clear eyes filled with wariness. It seems such things happened here too. High-ranking nobles eyeing young children.

Divlik reached out and placed his hand on the boy’s head.

“Continue to protect your sister well.”

“Pardon…?”

“I said you may go now.”

“Yes. Then, madam, excuse us.”

The boy gave a polite greeting to Eva, who was in Divlik’s arms, before disappearing with the child. Though the boy had taken the lead in front of unfamiliar adults, once they were a bit farther away, the girl’s voice became louder. The sound of her laughing while calling ‘brother, brother’ continued until they turned the corner.

“Later, when someone receives the title, they’ll move in. It seems someone brought children in while there was no master, even though we left the servants. Should we give them a warning?”

“No need. Isn’t a garden meant for children to play in originally? Let them play freely until the new owner comes and chases them out.”

As the conversation with Finn lengthened and Divlik’s arm holding Eva loosened, Eva stepped back as if she had been waiting for this moment.

“Thank you for catching me when I was about to fall, Lord Divlik.”

As Eva expressed her gratitude with even more courtesy than the boy and tried to leave his embrace, Divlik tightened his hold again, pulling her closer.

“Don’t just keep saying thank you, Former Empress. Show it through your actions.”

Though still with a hint of laughter, his words had a biting edge. As he suddenly pulled Eva close, the rose scent from earlier became even stronger at the tip of his nose. Divlik, with a face that seemed unable to resist, lightly licked Eva’s neck as if tasting it.

“It’s fortunate that I’m a man of quick action. I almost missed the chance to properly taste you, when you smell so good.”

After laughing heartily with a voice full of composure, as if regretting what he might have missed, Divlik stood holding Eva for a long while. Gazing somewhere with a distant look in his eyes at the corner where the children had already disappeared and no one else was present.

* * *

Crash.

“I’m sorry… I’m sorry, Lord Divlik!”

It was already the fourth time. That a plate of food had shattered right in front of them. After waiting for about an hour, Divlik’s patience seemed to have run out as his voice grew harsh.

“Do you not want to serve me food?”

“No, that’s not it! My hand slipped! Please forgive me!”

This was at the restaurant where they had sat down to have an early dinner after touring the main facilities in central Hael. Located in a corner slightly away from the high-end shopping district, this restaurant, with its shabby exterior, was not a place fit for an empress, let alone nobles.

“I came here because I was told it would suit the taste of people from the south, but this is disappointing. I wonder if I’ll even get to taste if the food suits my palate.”

“It seems he’s nervous because he’s in front of you, Lord Divlik. He usually doesn’t make such mistakes…”

Eva had liked the food here when she happened to taste it before. If she couldn’t come directly, she would even summon the owner, who was also the chef and the only employee, to the castle. This was the only restaurant in Hael that served food with as many spices as in Florin.

“Mark, there’s no need to be nervous. Nothing will happen if you just serve the food well as you always do.”

“I’ll remake it right away!”

Fearing that Finn, sitting at the next table, might rush over in anger at any moment, Eva deliberately spoke to send the owner away.

“You even know the name of the owner of such a restaurant?”

Divlik asked while tapping his fingertips on the table, and Eva answered immediately.

“Yes. There are few chefs as skilled in southern cuisine as the owner here. I often requested food from him. I’m sure you’ll feel better once you taste it, Lord Divlik.”

“Isn’t southern cuisine known for its strong flavors that people either love or hate? Do you know where I’m from?”

“I heard you were from the southern region. Am I mistaken?”

As Divlik withheld his answer and only the sound of his tapping on the table could be heard, Finn grumbled from the next table.

“It better not taste bad.”

As if he hadn’t just paused but had no intention of answering from the start, Divlik clicked his tongue softly at Finn’s words.

Finn fell silent, seemingly watching Divlik’s mood in the ensuing silence, but soon his stomach growled. Despite the inappropriate situation, Eva was reminded of Charlotte, who would always make such noises at particularly serious moments, and she unknowingly tried to suppress a smile by pressing her lips together.

“You can still smile in that state?”

Divlik must have been observing Eva quite closely, as he noticed the smile she had hidden and spoke in a displeased tone.

“I apologize.”

“Smiling isn’t a fault, I suppose. I’m just surprised. That you can smile even when you’ve lost your country and are mourning your lord’s death.”

It wasn’t particularly a laugh that was about to burst out. It certainly wasn’t a laugh of joy or pleasure. It was just a wistful smile that was about to escape, as the memory of Charlotte, whom she would never see again, was as lovely as it was poignant.

“I suppose you smile because you’re still breathing. Do you know under what conditions that breath is allowed? Tsk.”

Divlik seemed unable to tolerate even that kind of smile from Eva. Perhaps he was angry that a woman he wanted to submit was smiling in any way.

“I wonder how long it’s been since you’ve had a proper meal from your hometown, Lord Divlik.”

This time, the food that they hadn’t even been able to smell or see the shape of before was properly placed on the table. Finn rubbed his hands together in anticipation, even drooling, but Divlik’s expression didn’t improve much.

Eva fumbled across the table to find her knife and fork, then located the plate in front of her and calmly cut and ate the dish the owner had served. Although her pace was slow as she had to find the location of the food each time she took a bite, there was no sign of unsightly dribbling or her tongue coming out first, or any other undignified behavior.

“You’ve become accustomed to such useless things. By now, you should have become accustomed to my body instead. Do you plan to eat until the sun sets? If you’ve eaten enough, stand up.”

Divlik didn’t seem to like even that aspect of Eva. Moreover, when the restaurant owner held Eva’s hand as she was about to leave after finishing her meal and showed tears, Divlik was extremely displeased. Although he didn’t say anything directly, the sharp atmosphere from Divlik, who had stopped behind them, was palpable.

“I’m not sure if you were able to eat properly with your eyes covered. Please take care of your health first, Your Majesty. Whenever you call for me, I’ll come to the castle with plenty of ingredients.”

“Thank you. But I’m no longer an empress. The title ‘Your Majesty’ doesn’t suit me anymore, so if you need to address me in the future, would you call me Eva?”

“Pardon…? Ah, I will. Miss Eva.”

Worried that Divlik might get angry at the title ‘Your Majesty’, Eva left the restaurant anxiously. Then, people who had been hiding somewhere approached Eva’s side, cautiously watching Divlik’s reaction.

“Empress, it’s a great relief that you’re alive.”

“Empress, please take care of your health above all. That’s the most important thing.”

Seemingly aware that it would be troublesome if Divlik heard, the people who lowered their voices expressed concern for Eva and even cried in front of her.

“What a lovely sight, Former Empress.”

As if he could no longer bear to watch this scene, Divlik suddenly raised his hand high and clapped. It wasn’t strange that people held their breath and fled at this action. It felt like an even more terrible anger than if he had burst out in rage.

“It seems you have much to discuss with your precious people. Shall you come up slowly by yourself? Make sure to return. I’ll believe those words of yours, that you understand your position well.”

As if he could no longer stand to watch this scene, Divlik turned his back, leaving Eva behind.

At that moment, Eva had an opportunity.

An opportunity to choose an option other than dying or serving in bed.